Consciousness and loneliness : theoria and praxis /
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Current research claims loneliness is passively caused by external conditions: environmental, cultural, situational, and even chemical imbalances in the brain and hence avoidable. In this book, the author argues that loneliness is actively constituted by acts of reflexive self-consciousness (Kant) and transcendent intentionality (Husserl) and is, therefore, unavoidable. This work employs a historical, conceptual, and interdisciplinary approach (philosophy, psychology, literature, sociology, et cetera) criticizing both psychoanalysis and neuroscience. The book pits materialism, mechanism, determinism, empiricism, phenomenalism, behaviorism, and the neurosciences against dualism, both subjective and objective idealism, rationalism, freedom, phenomenology, and existentialism. It offers a dynamic of loneliness, whose spontaneous subconscious sources undercuts the unconscious of Freud and the "computerism" of the neurosciences by challenging their claims to be predictive sciences.
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1 online resource. :
Includes bibliographical references and index. :
9789004385979 :
0929-8436 ;
Buddhist Philosophy of Consciousness : Tradition and Dialogue /
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Buddhist Philosophy of Consciousness brings Buddhist voices to the study of consciousness. This book explores a variety of different Buddhist approaches to consciousness that developed out of the Buddhist theory of non-self. Topics taken up in these investigations include: how we are able to cognize our own cognitions; whether all conscious states involve conceptualization; whether distinct forms of cognition can operate simultaneously in a single mental stream; whether non-existent entities can serve as intentional objects; and does consciousness have an intrinsic nature, or can it only be characterized functionally? These questions have all featured in recent debates in consciousness studies. The answers that Buddhist philosophers developed to such questions are worth examining just because they may represent novel approaches to questions about consciousness.
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1 online resource. :
Includes bibliographical references and index. :
9789004440913
9789004440890
Kant on conscience : a unified approach to moral self-consciousness /
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In Kant on Conscience Emre Kazim offers the first systematic treatment of Kant's theory of conscience. Contrary to the scholarly consensus, Kazim argues that Kant's various discussions of conscience - as practical reason, as a feeling, as a power, as a court, as judgement, as the voice of God, et cetera - are philosophically coherent aspects of the same unified thing ('Unity Thesis'). Through conceptual reconstruction and historical contextualisation of the primary texts, Kazim both presents Kant's notion of conscience as it relates to his critical thought and philosophically evaluates the coherence of his various claims. In light of this, Kazim shows the central role that conscience plays in the understanding of Kantian ethics as a whole.
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1 online resource. :
Includes bibliographical references and index. :
9789004340664 :
2211-2014 ; :
Available to subscribing member institutions only.
The Unity of Mystical Traditions, The Transformation of Consciousness in Tibetan and German Mysticism.
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This book argues that mystical doctrines and practices initiate parallel transformative processes in the consciousness of mystics. This thesis is supported through a comparative analysis of Tibetan Buddhist Dzogchen (rdzogs-chen) and the medieval German mysticism of Eckhart, Suso, and Tauler. These traditions are interpreted using a system/cybernetic model of consciousness. This model provides a theoretical framework for assessing the cognitive effects of mystical doctrines and practices and showing how different doctrines and practices may nevertheless initiate common transformative processes. This systems approach contributes to current philosophical discourse on mysticism by (1) making possible a precise analysis of the cognitive effects of mystical doctrines and practices, and (2) reconciling mystical heterogeneity with the essential unity of mystical traditions.
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1 online resource. :
9789047407218
Constructions of Greek Past : Identity and Historical Consciousness from Antiquity to the Present /
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In May 1999, a second conference of Hellenists (of all periods and subject areas) from the Dutch-speaking countries was organized in Groningen. The theme of this second conference was 'Constructions of Greek Past. Identity and Historical Consciousness from Antiquity to the Present.' The conference theme was described as follows: When seeking to establish its own identity, a culture (country, people, nation) readily resorts to its own history, which it uses either as an example or as something to react against. In recent years there has been a growing awareness that this process often reveals more about a culture in the present day than the historical era to which it harks back: its own identity, and thus its own history, are 'constructed' in this way. The constructional approach is usually applied to the birth of new nation states and the development of their national ideologies, particularly in the nineteenth century. But it can be applied more broadly too. Greek culture is an excellent subject area for studying this phenomenon even further back in history, precisely because its history is so long and included several 'Golden Ages' to which later periods could (and can) hark back. Greek culture still presents itself as a product of Ancient Greek and/or Byzantine culture. However, the problem of continuity in Greek culture has frequently manifested itself, particularly during periods of radical political, ideological or demographic change. The Homeric influence on the Mycenaean world is therefore also an aspect of this phenomenon. The Homeric world served as an example for later periods, as did the Attic period for the Greeks in the Hellenistic-Roman age. The tensions between the Hellenistic and Roman character of the Greek world had a strong influence on the shaping of the Greek identity during late Antiquity and the Middle Ages. Those tensions still exist today (ellenismós/ellenikótita v. romiosyni). The theme was designed to bring together Hellenists of all periods and disciplines (literature, language, history, archaeology, ecclesiastical history, sociology etc.) relating to the Greek world. The colloquium sessions were held in Dutch, but the papers are published in English (two in French).
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1 online resource. :
Includes bibliographical references and index. :
9789004495463
9789069801438
Bild, Selbstbewusstsein, Einbildung /
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Dieser Band der Fichte-Studien Bild, Selbstbewusstsein, Einbildung stellt Fichtes Bildlehre im systematischen Zusammenhang seiner Wissenschaftslehre vor. Im Vordergrund steht der Bezug des Bildes zur Einbildungskraft und zum Selbstbewusstsein sowohl in einer transzendentalphilosophischen Perspektive als auch das Verhältnis zu Gott, dem Absoluten und der Welt betreffend. Zugleich werden hierbei auch praktische und ästhetische Aspekte der Bildproblematik mitberücksichtigt. Die verschiedenen Beiträge machen deutlich, inwiefern diese Problematik den Bezug zum frühen Fichte herzustellen und auch einen Ausblick auf die späten Arbeiten des Begründers der Wissenschaftslehre zu geben vermag. Dank der Vielfalt der Ansätze bietet dieser Band einen wertvollen Einblick in die jüngste internationale Fichte-Forschung bezüglich eines grundlegenden Aspekts im Denken eines der Hauptvertreter der Klassischen Deutschen Philosophie.
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1 online resource (vi, 234 pages) :
9789004310865 :
0925-0166 ; :
Available to subscribing member institutions only.
Beyond conceptual dualism : ontology of consciousness, mental causation and holism in John R. Searle's Philosophy of mind /
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This book is a systematic analysis of John R. Searle's philosophy of mind. Searle's view of mind, as a set of subjective and biologically embodied processes, can account for our being part of nature qua mindful beings. This model finds support in neuroscience and offers reliable solutions to the problems of consciousness, mental causation, and the self.
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1 online resource (xx, 192 pages) :
Includes bibliographical references (p. 165-174) and index. :
9789401206334 :
0929-8436 ; :
Available to subscribing member institutions only.
The founder of the Hare Krishnas as seen by devotees : a cognitive study of religious charisma /
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The Hare Krishna movement is one of the most well-known new religious movements in the Western societies. It was founded in New York in 1966 by the Indian monk A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupāda (1896-1977). The fact that it emerged during the heyday of the countercultural protests is often invoked in the explanations of its success. This book offers a completely new account for the rise and growth of the Hare Krishna movement by analysing it from the viewpoint of cognitive science of religion. It focuses on the charisma of the founder-guru through the writings of his earliest disciples and also takes a close look at the theology and ritual practices of the movement.
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Based on the author's dissertation (doctoral--University of Helsinki, 2002). :
1 online resource. :
Includes bibliographical references (p. [215]-225) and indexes. :
9789047433262 :
Available to subscribing member institutions only.
Courageous vulnerability : ethics and knowledge in Proust, Bergson, Marcel, and James /
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This work develops the ethical attitude of courageous vulnerability through the integration of Marcel Proust's novel In Search of Lost Time and the philosophies of Henri Bergson, William James, and Gabriel Marcel. Central to the discussion is the phenomenon of involuntary memory, taken from common experience but "discovered" and made visible by Proust. Through the connection between a variety of themes from both Continental and American schools of thought such as Bergson's phenomenological account of the artist, James' "will to believe," and Marcel's "creative fidelity," the courageously vulnerable individual is shown to take seriously the ethical implications of the knowledge gained from involuntary memories and similar "privileged moments," and do justice to the "something more" which, though part of our experience of ourselves and others, escapes rigid philosophical analysis.
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1 online resource. :
Includes bibliographical references and index. :
9789004182776 :
1875-2470 ; :
Available to subscribing member institutions only.
From phenomenology to existentialism : the philosophy of Rabbi Joseph B. Soloveitchik /
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Rabbi Joseph B. Soloveitchik's philosophy plays a significant role in twentieth century Jewish thought. This book focuses on the first and the second stages of Soloveitchik's philosophy (1945-1965), through a systematic and detailed discussion of some of his essays, including "From There You Shall Seek" and "The Lonely Man of Faith". Schwartz analyzes these essays according to this thesis: in the mid 40s Soloveitchik used the phenomenology of religion to express his views, while in the 50s he added the existential theory.
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1 online resource (xix, 414 pages) :
Includes bibliographical references and index. :
9789004243347 :
Available to subscribing member institutions only.
Plotinus on What We Think We Are /
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The Neoplatonic philosopher Plotinus invites us to take part in his philosophizing when he encourages his readers to think about what they think they are, as living beings, human beings, as rational beings, ethical subjects and as philosophers. He is interested in what we say about ourselves in ordinary language and notices that such ordinary experience conflicts with what the Platonic tradition claims we (truly) are. This conflict does not lead him to turn away from the human terms and expressions, but impels him to take seriously what we say about ourselves and to explain it philosophically.
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1 online resource (180 pages) : illustrations. :
Includes bibliographical references and index. :
9789004678651
Later Platonists and their Heirs among Christians, Jews, and Muslims /
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Later Platonists and their Heirs among Christians, Jews and Muslims offers a thought-provoking exploration of the reception of Platonism among communities of faith from early Christianity to the sixteenth century, from the Byzantine East to the Latin West. Rare emphasis is placed on the importance of Platonic thought and its diffusion in late antique and medieval Syria, Armenia, and Georgia but also among Arab and Jewish intellectuals from the seventh century onwards. As such, the volume makes a statement against the separation of Neoplatonic philosophy from Christianity and the other Abrahamic faiths, since all four traditions promoted a life of virtue and goodness despite operating under different divine auspices. The volume seeks to establish paths of transmission and modes of adaptation across times and places.
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1 online resource :
Includes bibliographical references and index. :
9789004450264
9789004527850
David Shatz : Torah, philosophy, and culture /
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David Shatz is the Ronald P. Stanton University Professor of Philosophy, Ethics, and Religious Thought at Yeshiva University. With rabbinic ordination earned at Yeshiva University and a Ph.D. with distinction in philosophy from Columbia University, Shatz is committed to integrating Judaism and secular wisdom. An analytic philosopher as well as a Jewish philosopher, he has written extensively on free will, ethics, epistemology, medieval and modern Jewish philosophy, and philosophy of religion. His writings cover such topics as autonomy, altruism, philosophical skepticism, science and Judaism, peer review, theodicy, biblical interpretation, Maimonides, modern rabbinic figures, messianism, fanaticism, religious diversity, and theology. Shatz is also editor of the MeOtzar HoRav series, which publishes manuscripts of Rabbi Joseph B. Soloveitchik, and is editor of the Torah u-Madda Journal .
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1 online resource. :
Includes bibliographical references and index. :
9789004326484 :
2213-6010 ; :
Available to subscribing member institutions only.
Themes from Brentano /
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Franz Brentano's impact on the philosophy of his time and on 20th-century philosophy is considerable. The "sharp dialectician" (Freud) and "genial master" (Husserl) influenced philosophers of various allegiances, being acknowledged not only as the "grandfather of phenomenology" (Ryle) but also as an analytic philosopher "in the best sense of this term" (Chisholm). The fourteen new essays gathered together in this volume give an insight in three core issues of Brentano's philosophy: consciousness (sect.1), intentionality (sect. 2) and ontology and metaphysics (sect. 3). Two further sections of the volume deal with the posterity of his philosophy: in section 4, the legacy of his account of sense perception and feeling is discussed, while the history of Brentano's unpublished manuscripts is discussed in section 5. This section also presents an edition of a manuscript from 1899 on relations, along with the letters from Brentano to Marty which discuss this manuscript. The last part of section 5 contains the tekst of a public lecture given by Brentano on the laws of inference.
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1 online resource (530 pages) : illustrations. :
Includes bibliographical references and index. :
9789401209939 :
0167-4102 ; :
Available to subscribing member institutions only.
Weapons of words: intertextual competition in Babylonian poetry : a study of Anzū, Enūma eliš, and Erra and Išum /
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In Weapons of Words: Intertextual Competition in Babylonian Poetry Selena Wisnom offers an in-depth literary study of three poems central to Babylonian culture: Anzû, Enūma eliš, and Erra and Išum . Fundamentally interconnected, each poem strives to out-do its predecessors and competes to establish its protagonist, its ideals, and its poetics as superior to those that came before them. The first of its kind in Assyriology, Weapons of Words explores the rich nuances of these poems by unravelling complex networks of allusion. Through a sophisticated analysis of literary techniques, Selena Wisnom traces developments in the Akkadian poetic tradition and demonstrates that intertextual readings are essential for a deeper understanding of Mesopotamian literature.
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Based on the author's dissertation (doctoral)--University of Oxford, 2014. :
1 online resource. :
Includes bibliographical references and index. :
9789004412972
The sequential imperative : general cognitive principles and the structure of behaviour /
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In The Sequential Imperative William Edmondson explains how deep study of linguistics - from phonetics to pragmatics - can be the basis for understanding the organization of behaviour in any organism with a brain. The work demonstrates that Cognitive Science needs to be anchored in a linguistic setting. Only then can Cognitive Scientists reach out to reconsider the nature of consciousness and to appreciate the functionality of all brains. The core functionality of the brain - any brain, any species, any time - is delivery and management of the unavoidable bi-directional transformation between brain states and activity - the Sequential Imperative. Making it all work requires some general cognitive principles and close attention to detail. The book sets out the case in broad terms but also incorporates significant detail where necessary.
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1 online resource. :
Includes bibliographical references and index. :
9789004342996 :
0929-8436 ; :
Available to subscribing member institutions only.